


It Started in the Coffee Shop

by Paradoxikalli



Category: RWBY
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-29
Updated: 2016-06-15
Packaged: 2018-05-16 23:58:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 13,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5845969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Paradoxikalli/pseuds/Paradoxikalli
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>People say the best years of your life are in college. As Coco Adel prepares to begin her second year at Beacon University, she strikes up a conversation with a fellow student named Velvet in a coffee shop. As her life at college continues and her connection with Velvet progresses, maybe her best years are right around the corner.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Coffee Shop Meeting

Having money meant making decisions.

 There was nothing arrogant about it. The balance in a bank account didn't measure worth, nor did it mean one person had more right to something than the next. It just meant more options, which led to more decisions. Of all the places in the country, which college would be the best fit? Beacon University in Vale, Maine. With so many academic programs to pick from, what path to take? A fashion design major with a minor in metalworking. Which residence hall to live in? None: just an off-campus apartment. Would the black flowing vest be better or the navy one? Hmmm...

 "Coco, I'm leaving right now and dropping all these clothes you’re making me carry on the floor in a heap unless you pick one in ten...nine..."

 "Black," Coco decided, hanging the navy vest on the rack again. "I don't know why you're being stiff about this."

 "We have been in this store for four hours. Four. Hours. I have better things to do."

 "Oh really?" Coco raised an eyebrow, playfully amused at the claim. "Care to explain what could possibly be better than spending time with your wonderful best friend?"

 "'Wonderful' is a debatable description for you, especially today. We've been up and on this shopping trip since nine this morning because you’re a shopaholic with too many clothes than you know what to do with, yet you still ‘need’ more. It is now almost two in the afternoon, and this is the third store you've dragged me into. Anything would probably be better than this."

 "Oh stop whining, Fox. Just let me buy this and you can go do whatever so-called 'better things' you have in mind. I need some coffee anyhow."

 "Thank God," Fox declared. Coco scowled and gave his shoulder a light punch before they headed up to the register.

 Coco Adel and Fox Alistair were often in some sort of playful banter or fight. Best friends since seventh grade, they had seen each other's very best and very worst days, and they'd stood their ground together through it all. Their sophomore year of college was about to begin and they were out on one last summer excursion. Coco called it fun; Fox called it torture.

 A hundred and twenty dollars later they were going their separate ways, with Fox heading toward campus and Coco going to her car. She added the bags from that last store to the pile in the passenger's seat and started the car, heading to a local coffee and ice cream shop called Freezerburn.

 She got the same thing she always did: a cinnamon caramel latte and a small cup of rocky road ice cream. It was a busy day for Freezerburn, Coco noticed as she looked around to see that every seat was full. She didn't really want to go back to her car yet and eating outside in the burning heat would be equally unpleasant so she surveyed the shop again, searching for any...

 Aha! An open chair.

 Coco made her way over. The table was small, made for two people, and located in a corner beside the window. It was a rather cozy location to sit down and have coffee.

 There was someone sitting there: a young woman in the chair that left her back against the wall. She had a sketchbook open in front of her as she made careful pencil strokes against a page. A lock of her long brown hair fell in the way of her vision and she tucked it behind her ear.

 "Hey," Coco said as she reached the table.

 The woman jumped, startled, and looked up, her wide brown eyes meeting Coco's. Coco had to smile at how positively adorable the brunette was.

 "Oh! I-I'm sorry!"

 Her accent was cute too.

 "Do you want to sit here? I'll move."

 "No, no, it's fine," Coco assured her. "You don't have to move. I was just wondering if I could sit with you. No empty seats and all. Do you mind? I don't bite, I promise."

 "Um...sure. Go ahead," the brunette said. Coco smiled and sat across from her.

 "You just have water?" she noticed the nearly empty cup beside the sketchbook.

 "Oh. Yeah. I, um...don't have much cash on me," the brunette admitted, blushing.

 "Hm." Coco dug in her purse and pulled out her wallet. "Here, go get whatever you want. My treat," she said with a smile, holding out a twenty-dollar bill.

 "Oh, no, you don't have to...I'm fine!"

 "No, I insist. As thanks for letting me sit here," Coco replied. "And keep the change so you have something in your wallet."

 "Are you sure?"

 "Positive," Coco confirmed, putting her wallet away to make it even clearer. The brunette gave a small, hesitant smile and took the offered money.

 "Thanks."

 "Also...what's your name?" Coco asked. "I don't think I can just keep calling you 'the cute brunette' this whole time, can I? It's accurate, but names are nice too."

 Aforementioned cute brunette suddenly seemed to have a hard time forming actual words as her face flushed. Coco gave a slight chuckle at how flustered she was and took a sip of her latte, patiently waiting for the blushing brunette's power of speech to return in place of the meaningless sounds currently stuttering from her lips.

 "I-I'm Velvet Scarlatina," she finally managed to say.

 "Coco Adel," Coco replied. "Nice to meet you."

 "Likewise." Velvet smiled shyly. "Um, can you...make sure no one looks at my sketchbook while I get something to drink?"

 "No problem. And I promise I won't peek either."

 "Thank you," Velvet said gratefully before heading up toward the counter. Coco hummed a slight melody and stared out the window, not excited that classes started the next morning.

 At least she was with someone cute.

 Velvet soon returned with a cup of some heated drink and a small bowl of vanilla ice cream.

 "So...tell me a little about yourself," Coco said before taking a sip of her latte.

 "I...what?" Velvet asked with a confused expression.

 "Do you live in Vale? Have any hobbies? I mean we're sitting at the same table. A little conversation wouldn't be bad."

 "Oh. Okay," Velvet agreed. "I live here and I go to Beacon. I'm a full time student but I don't live in a dorm. I'm majoring in photography with a minor in visual art. So...I obviously love photography and I try my best at art. I also...um, I have a very liberal view of the world, so I'm sorry if that offends you or anything..."

 "Are you kidding?" Coco smirked. "I'm pretty liberal myself." The brunette across from her visibly relaxed. "Oh by the way, I hope you don't mind sexuality."

 "Sexuality?" Velvet asked. “Why do you mention that?"

 "I'm bi, and I'm a little more into the female population to be honest," she explained. "Is that an issue or anything?"

 "No! No, I...I'm a lesbian. You're fine."

 "Oh? Is ‘fine’ a compliment to my looks?" Coco teased. "Not hitting on me so soon, are you?"

 "What?" Velvet's eyes widened and her face reddened. "No! I mean...you are beautiful but I'm not flirting. If anything, you're the one who was flirting me with that ‘cute brunette’ comment you made when you asked for my name."

 "Okay, good point. And I wasn't really doing it specifically to hit on you, just so you know; I just tend to get a little flirtatious with attractive people. Don't get freaked out by it," Coco informed her.

 "Alright," Velvet agreed with a smile. "So I told you a little bit about myself...what about you?"

 "I live in Vale and go to Beacon too, and I don't live on campus either. My best friend calls me 'a worshipper of all things fashion' and says it's cruel and unusual punishment when I drag him shopping with me, which I do a lot. I'm working toward a fashion design major as a full-time student, and also pursuing a minor in metalworking. I'm pretty big on making clothes from scratch and improving a lot of the clothes I buy, and I'm working on making my own patterns too."

 "Wow. That's...really cool," Velvet commented.

 "Thanks," Coco replied with a smile. "Same to you."

 There were a few seconds of silence as both of them became involved in their drinks and ice cream. Then Coco decided to try getting Velvet to blush again.

 "You know...if you ever want a model for photography or art, I'd be happy to help. I have more outfit options than I can count, and I'm always happy to show them off. I'm happy to show off what's under those outer clothes too...and I'd be fully thrilled if you want a model with no clothes at all," she offered with a smirk.

 Velvet's face instantly turned a vibrant shade of red. Her mouth hung open and a few strangled sounds came out as she stared with wide eyes.

 "For video too," Coco added.

 Velvet's blush somehow deepened and she quickly ducked her head, covering her face with both hands for good measure. Coco leaned back in her chair and laughed, pleased with this result.

 "You are extremely adorable when you're this embarrassed," she declared with a smirk.

 "Stop it!" Velvet protested, but her tone was mortified instead of upset. "Y-you're messing up my thoughts!"

 "Oh?" Coco asked playfully. "I suppose you're considering taking me up on that no clothes offer then?"

 "No! No, no, no!" She shook her head viciously, pressing her face into her hands even more.

 "Hmm. Whatever you say, Velvet."

 "You like teasing me, don't you?"

 "It's fun to see you blush. Very endearing."

 Velvet's phone went off and she uncovered her face to check it, still blushing violently.

 "My friend's here to pick me up," she said, closing her sketchbook so she could tuck it under her arm as she stood, picking up her drink and ice cream and somehow managing to handle her water as well without dropping anything.

 "Then I'll see you around, cutie," Coco said flirtatiously with a wink.

 "S-see you around," Velvet stammered, her face flushing even brighter as she hurried out.

Coco chuckled and turned her attention to her latte and ice cream again. She was confident that with the possibility of seeing the adorable and easily embarrassed Velvet Scarlatina around campus, it was going to be a fun year.


	2. The First Day's Lunch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow...I have absolutely no idea how I managed to crank this out so fast. I doubt such speed will become a constant habit though.

The first few classes on Day One gave Coco nothing to report. It was just each professor handing out a syllabus and going over course expectations, rules, policies, and other such boring matters that students could discover on their own if they actually read the syllabus instead of shoving it into a folder and never looking at it again.

 At half past one, Coco met Fox outside the meal hall for the lunch they planned to have at this time every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday since their next classes weren't for about one and a half hours.

 As the highly fashionable young woman walked up to her waiting friend, he raised an eyebrow and gave her a strange look before she even said a word.

 "What?" she asked as she stopped in front of him.

 "What happened?" he replied.

 "I...what?" Coco frowned slightly.

 "You're subtly looking around like you're hoping to see someone, you have this weird gait that's even more of a confident strut than usual, and your eyes look...extremely cheerful. Weird on the first day of classes, especially for you," he explained.

 "Observant as ever," Coco said, rolling her eyes.

 In October of Fox's sophomore year of high school, his eyes had clouded over and left him blind. Coco had gotten a note from his doctor telling the school to let her leave her classes early and arrive to them late so she could meet Fox at his classrooms and guide him around the school to keep him safe. There were insults and comments directed at him by various people at first, but after a few weeks of rough physical lessons taught by an angry Coco regarding exactly why they should leave her best friend alone, they all got the message and stopped.

 Then in late February, Fox was approved for an experimental surgery to repair the damage to his eyes, which had apparently been caused by some sort of reaction. He went in and the doctors completed the delicate operation, then confined him to a hospital room with a black blindfold over his eyes to let them heal. Coco went there and stayed with him as long as she could after school every day, plus the weekends. She was incredibly loyal to him because he had stayed by her side through the good times and the bad without faltering once. They were practically siblings by that point.

 After two weeks, the doctors started having him close his eyes while they exchanged the blindfold for one with less opacity to ease him into having sight again so a sudden influx of light wouldn't undo all the good the operation did. Four weeks and many blindfolds after the surgery, they removed the protection completely. Coco was in the room for that, and seeing Fox's blind white eyes back to their original stunning, almost aqua blue had been a truly uplifting moment.

 Now Fox's eyesight was almost superhuman. He noticed everything, which got annoying at some times but was very helpful at others. He could always identify Coco's emotions in just a few moments.

 "I just so happen to be the very best at speaking to the lovely ladies of the world," she boasted boldly as they walked into the meal hall to get their lunch.

 "No you're not," he told her flatly, following her over toward the pizza counter.

 "Well I was yesterday."

 "Oh really? Spill."

 "After leaving that store, I went to Freezerburn but there were no empty tables so I sat down with a cute brunette named Velvet who goes to Beacon," she said as they got in the line to wait for a turn to get their food. "She's shooting for a photography major with a minor in visual art."

 "And let me guess...you hit on her."

 "Well of course. I mean how could I not? She had this really pretty brown hair and a really cute cut for her bangs, plus big brown eyes and the most adorable expressions. And her accent just made her even more irresistible."

 "I get the point," he cut her off. "Don't ramble for ten minutes about her external qualities trying to prove you actually have talent when it comes to flirting with attractive people. What happened to give you this much excessive confidence?"

 Coco gave a slight pout at his decision to abruptly halt her description of Velvet's physical attributes, but as always he was unimpressed by the expression.

 "Fine. She didn't have enough money on her to get something good to drink so I gave her twenty bucks and told her to keep the change so she'd have some cash."

 "Are you bribing this girl?" Fox asked. Coco huffed and glared at him harshly. 

 "No. I don't need to bribe anyone. I have people falling for me left and right," she declared.

 "Oh really?" He raised an eyebrow. "Remind me how many months it's been since you were in an actual relationship."

 "Low blow," she told him. He shrugged.

 "All's fair when I'm talking to you."

 Coco glared at him for a few seconds.

 "Moving on," she said, "I realized how easily she gets flustered when she lost the ability to use words after I called her cute."

 "So you exploited that," he guessed as they reached the front of the line and each grabbed a tray.

 "Oh yeah. I made her turn so red she ended up hiding her face. She had to leave before I could get her number though. She seemed pretty cool so I wouldn't mind having her around. Not just so I can flirt with her and make her adorably embarrassed, although that'd be a very nice perk. She actually seems like she'd be a pretty good friend," Coco said, grabbing a slice of cheese pizza and an apple.

 "I see," Fox said as he picked up two pieces of pepperoni pizza. "You go ahead and find a table; I think I'll get a sandwich to go with this pizza since I didn’t eat breakfast."

 "Alright," Coco agreed, heading toward the registers and picking up a bottle of lemonade on the way.

 Once she used one of the meals from her meal plan to buy the food, Coco cast a glance around to find a decent place to sit. She started walking through the tables, searching for a good option, and heard a familiar accent.

 Turning her head toward the voice, Coco scanned the area until she spotted someone with a small figure and long brown hair, facing away from her. She was sitting at a round table and talking to a massive man, who was nodding along as she made large hand gestures. The rest of the table was empty. Coco smirked and walked over.

 "Mind if I sit here?" she asked. Velvet jumped and looked up, her face reddening slightly. Coco's smirk widened. It appeared her final comments at Freezerburn were still having a bit of an effect on the brunette.

 "I-I...uh..."

 "Do you know her?" the man asked, casting a suspicious glance at Coco before looking back at Velvet.

 "Yatsu, it's...she's...she's um...the...you know..." Velvet looked at him meaningfully but he still appeared confused. "She's the one I was talking about who bought me coffee!" she finally exclaimed, her face turning a brilliant shade of scarlet. He gave a nod of realization and a slight smile.

 "Oh, so you were talking about me?" Coco asked lightly. "Am I that memorable?"

 She decided that she definitely liked making the brunette blush and lose her ability to speak.

 "So...can I sit here or not?" Coco asked. Velvet nodded and she sat beside her, then raised an eyebrow at the man. "You got a name you want to share?"

 "Yatsuhashi Daichi," he replied.

 "I'm Coco Adel."

 "I know. She told me."

 A slight squeak came from Velvet.

 "Yatsu!" she protested, her face turning red again as she glared at him. He shrugged and smiled.

 "I didn't know you squeaked, Velvet," Coco said. "Kinda cute, if you ask me."

 Velvet whipped around and stared at her, eyes wide as her cheeks became even redder.

 "Hey," Fox said as he plopped down beside Coco. "Who're your new friends?"

 "Right. This is my best friend, Fox Alistair. Fox, this is Yatsuhashi Daichi and Velvet Scarlatina," Coco said. Fox nodded and looked at each as they said hello. Then he did a pointed double take when his eyes landed on Velvet.

 "So this is the cute brunette you were raving about?" he asked casually.

 "Asshole," Coco muttered, blushing lightly.

 "Quick warning, especially to Velvet," Fox said, glancing at Coco with an "I'm not done embarrassing you yet" expression. "Don't turn your back to her, especially around other people."

 "Why?" Velvet asked.

 "Because she has been known to smack her friends on the ass. She does it to me all the time," he explained.

 "Are you complaining?" Coco raised an eyebrow.

 "Considering every potential date I've lost because you just had to do it if you thought I might be getting somewhere...yes."

 "A congratulatory ass slap is a sign of true friendship," Coco declared with a smirk. He rolled his eyes.

 "Or a sign of someone being truly annoying," he said.

 "Me? Annoying?" Coco asked with a falsely offended tone. Fox gave a slight snort.

 "Putting it lightly," he told her.

 "Then why are you still around?" Coco asked with playful anger.

 "Because I'd pity everyone else if I didn't keep your focus off of them."

 Coco chuckled and ruffled his hair, smirking at his rather indignant expression.

 "So...Yatsuhashi, right?" she asked, looking at the larger man. He nodded. "What do you plan on majoring in?"

 "I'm not sure yet," he admitted.

 "Join the club," Fox told him.

 "And you're...fashion design with a metalworking minor, if I remember what Velvet said correctly," Yatsuhashi said. Velvet's face turned red again.

 "Absolutely," Coco confirmed, looking at Velvet with a smirk.

 "Get that smug look off your face," Fox told Coco. "You told me her major too." He nodded at Velvet.

 "Oh?" Velvet asked curiously.

 "Photography and a minor in visual arts," he declared. Velvet gave a soft giggle and Coco rolled her eyes, blushing slightly.

 "His sole purpose in life is to annoy the hell out of me while making attempts to embarrass me," she explained Fox's motive.

 "Since when do I just attempt it?" he asked. "Whenever I try, I succeed."

 "Yeah yeah, don't get cocky. Revenge is coming your way," Coco threatened. "And it'll be damn good."

 "We'll see."

 Soft laughter made Coco stop staring down Fox. She turned to look at Velvet.

 "What's so funny?"

 "You two are just...it's hard to believe you're not related. Or...are you related?"

 "No. But we've been best friends since seventh grade. We've been through a lot together," Coco explained. She felt her eyes grow distant and quickly shook the expression off. "To be honest, I trust him more than anyone, including my own family. Even if he can be a completely insufferable prick."

 More laughter came from Velvet, and a chuckle from Yatsuhashi as well. Coco smiled slightly and looked down at her pizza. Then she felt eyes on her and looked up to see Fox watching her with an amused expression. She raised a curious eyebrow and he looked at her meaningfully.

 She recognized the message in his eyes and scowled, shaking her head slightly to tell him that no, he was wrong. One corner of his mouth curved up in an arrogant smirk, silently replying that he was right and she was in denial.

 She bonked a fist on his head just hard enough to hurt without causing a bruise or bump and turned back to her food to take a bite of her apple, silently telling him that the conversation of facial expressions was over. There was no way in hell his accusation was valid in any sense of the word.

 Especially not this soon.


	3. Phone Numbers and Game Plans

"Wow. Lunch with them on Monday and Wednesday. And now lunch with them on Friday is over and you still haven't asked for her number. I'm starting to think you're nervous."

 "Shut up, Fox," Coco said. "I just didn't remember to."

"Oh sure. You hit on her all the time to make her blush even though you're not serious about it despite it being complete honesty, but you keep forgetting to get her number. Get that and you can embarrass her by calling to flirt with her and texting her suggestive comments, and you'd probably send her a ton of stupid pickup lines. But you somehow forget every time you see her," he retorted.

 "Fox!" Coco snapped.

 "Here, I'll help you out," Fox said, turning to where Velvet and Yatsuhashi were a few yards away from the table at which he and Coco were still sitting, heading toward the exit.

 "Velvet, Yatsuhashi!" he called. The pair stopped walking and turned around to face him. He waved them over.

 "What?" Velvet asked as she and Yatsuhashi came to stand by the table.

 "We keep forgetting to ask for your phone numbers," he told them plainly. Coco was relieved at that wording because Fox didn't say said she kept forgetting to get Velvet's number. If he'd put it that way, he would have definitely inserted some stupid comment to embarrass her, which would not be good at all.  "Do you mind giving them now?" Fox asked.

 "Sure," Velvet replied with a smile. "I'll trade phones with Coco, and Yatsu, you can trade with Fox. Then we can trade them the other way too."

 "Cool," Fox said, holding his phone out to Yatsuhashi while Coco pulled hers out to trade with Velvet. Then she traded with Fox and Velvet traded with Yatsuhashi.

 When the phones were back with their original owners, Velvet and Yatsuhashi headed off to class.

 "Was that so hard?" Fox asked. Coco huffed irritably and scowled at him. "A little thanks would be nice."

 "Fine. Thank you," Coco muttered. He smirked and gave a nod, then turned back to his lunch. Coco rolled her eyes at how smug he was being about the whole thing and returned to her food as well, deciding that she would definitely take full advantage of Velvet's number being in her phone now.

 And of course, Fox was right about the pickup lines. As soon as she left the meal hall, Coco sent ten of the absolute lamest ones she could think of to Velvet throughout the brunette's class. They were all completely stupid, which was the whole point. And as soon as Velvet's fifty-minute class was over, Coco heard her phone go off and checked it.

  _ **Velvet** : Wow. Really? You're using these?_

_**Coco** : Hey, I'm starting simple._

_**Velvet** : Starting?_

_**Coco** : Yes. There are a lot more where those came from._

_**Velvet** : Will you ever stop hitting on me?_

_**Coco** : Not a chance._

_**Coco** : You're blushing, aren't you?_

_**Velvet** : No!_

_**Coco** : Bullshit. That's a lie and we both know it._

_**Velvet** : Why do you even do this in the first place?_

_**Velvet** : The whole hitting on me thing?_

_**Coco** : It's nothing directed at you personally because I'm into you or anything. I'm not. I just tend to hit on people I find physically attractive and who have major reactions._

_**Coco** : You have major reactions._

_**Velvet** : What major reactions?_

_**Coco** : Your face goes completely red, and if I do it just right you lose your ability to form words._

_**Coco** : That is a very major reaction._

_**Coco** : That's why I do it._

_**Velvet** : So if I stop reacting that way you'll stop?_

_**Coco** : Probably._

_**Velvet** : Probably?_

_**Coco** : Flirting is a hard habit to break, Velvet._

_**Coco** : Besides, you and I both know you're never going to stop getting all flustered and embarrassed._

_**Coco** : It's just not going to be a thing._

_**Velvet** : You don't know that._

_**Coco** : Yes I do._

_**Velvet** : No, you don't know that._

_**Velvet** : Seriously._

_**Coco** : I do know that._

_**Coco** : Seriously._

_**Velvet** : Are you going to be childish about this?_

_**Coco** : Maybe._

_**Velvet** : It was a yes or no question._

_**Coco** : Hmm. I'm not sure._

_**Velvet** : That's a yes then._

_**Coco** : No it's not._

_**Velvet** : You just proved my point._

_**Coco** : Are you calling me childish?_

_**Velvet** : Yes._

_**Coco** : Fine. That argument strategy was childish. But I'm not childish about...certain things. _

_**Velvet** : Certain things?_

_**Coco** : Because there is no way to be childish in bed._

_**Velvet** : I can't believe I didn't see that coming._

_**Velvet** : And stop typing the comment I know you want to make. _

_**Velvet** : Do not send the message you want to send._

_**Velvet** : Don't do it._

_**Coco** : Sorry, I just can't resist._

_**Velvet** : Don't you dare!_

_**Coco** : Fine, fine._

_**Coco** : IF!_

_**Coco** : If you meet Fox and me outside the library. We're going to play a really fun and mature game._

_**Coco** : Oh, and bring Yatsuhashi so we'll have an even number._

_**Velvet** : Um...what kind of mature game?_

_**Coco** : Laser tag._

_**Coco** : But it's built for adults, not little kids, so the setup is a lot bigger._

_**Velvet** : Alright. When?_

_**Coco** : Meet us outside the library at 7. I can drive you, Fox, and Yatsuhashi so don't worry about that._

_**Velvet** : Okay._

_**Coco** : Oh, and Velvet?_

_**Velvet** : What?_

_**Coco** : Wear all dark colors if you can. It'll give you a better chance of not getting shot._

_**Velvet** : Okay._

_**Velvet** : I'll see you later then!_

_**Coco** : Good._

_**Coco** : It's going to be a fun evening._

 Coco put her phone in her pocket and chuckled slightly as she went to class. She and Fox usually went one-on-one in laser tag. Two more people would make this extremely fun. 

 Oh, right. She had to inform Fox that the number of players for tonight's game had just doubled. Or maybe she'd just let him be surprised.

 Yes. She would let him be surprised. 

* * *

 

It was almost seven o’clock. Coco had been waiting outside the library for ten minutes already, just so she could see if Fox reacted at all to unexpectedly having two more people join the game. She heard footsteps and looked up to see…

Damn. Fox was walking with Velvet and Yatsuhashi.

“You thought you could surprise me,” Fox said with a smirk, reading her expression with flawless ease.

“Yeah,” Coco admitted. “Oh well. Let’s head out; my car’s parked right behind the library.”

Coco walked into the library and started going in her usual direction, but Fox grabbed the back of her shirt and yanked her back.

“No. We are not going that way,” he said firmly.

“Why not?” Coco asked with a scowl, facing him.

“Because you’ll spend ten minutes walking through the fashion magazines, and it’s not a direct route anyhow,” he declared.

“Fine,” Coco said, rolling her eyes as Velvet and Yatsuhashi chuckled at Fox’s statement. “Why don’t you lead, smartass?”

“I will, thanks,” he said smugly. As soon as he was in front of Coco she knew she had two options. She could push his back with both hands, or…

Coco decided to take the second option and forcefully smacked his ass. Stifled laughs came from behind her and she smirked. Fox was pretty immune to that action by now so he just sighed audibly and kept walking.

Tonight would undoubtedly be completely awesome. 

* * *

 

About a half hour later, Coco pulled into a small parking lot by a large building with five floors. The outside was decorated with neon lights and the sign above the door said “Raving Mad” in flashing neon letters.

The four of them got out of the car and Coco made sure to press the lock button on her keys twice, just to ensure the safety of her vehicle. Then she looked at Velvet and Yatsuhashi.

“You two are going to love this,” she predicted before leading all three of her friends through the door, into a room with regular lights but neon walls, flooring, ceiling, and furniture. She went right up to the desk and smiled at the man working there.

“The usual fare?” he asked, clearly recognizing her from the battles she had with Fox at least once every two weeks. Sometimes more.

“Not tonight,” she said. “We picked up a couple friends.”

The man peered past her at Velvet and Yatsuhashi, then looked at Coco again.

“Alright. I assume you want one of the larger rooms then?” he guessed.

“Absolutely. And this is their first time playing, so give me the best room you’ve got,” she requested. He raised an eyebrow.

“You sure? That’s not exactly beginner level,” he warned.

“Beginner level? Oh please. I’m throwing these two in someplace that isn’t boring. What does the best room have in it?” she asked.

“Well the floor has a kind of unpredictable pattern with varying heights accessible by ladders and stairs, all well-defended by a wide variety of shielding. There are several holes in it with slides that lead into an area that has…let’s just put it this way: prepare to get soaked. There are pools and waterfalls down there. There’s shielding in the pools, so you’re not out in the open. We have full-body dryers too, for when the game's over. And there are some areas on that bottom level with inflatable floors that have shielding on them. The ceiling’s pretty high down there. Even your tall friend there wouldn’t be at risk. There are ladders leading up from the bottom level into towers with doors that can only be opened from the inside,” he explained.

“That sounds fun,” Coco noticed, turning to look at the others. “You guys all cool with that?”

“It’ll certainly be interesting,” Fox said. “I’m in.”

“I’ll try it,” Yatsuhashi said. Velvet smiled brightly and nodded, indicating that she was fine with it too. Coco looked at the man at the desk again.

“Alright, we’ll take it. Two rounds, please.”

“Are you sure? That’s pretty expensive, you know.”

“I know,” Coco acknowledged. “But I don’t care.”

“Okay,” the man said, typing into his computer. “That’ll be—”

“Don’t tell me,” Coco cut him off. “They can never know.”

The man smiled slightly and took the credit card she handed him. After he swiped it, a receipt printed and he folded it, then held it and the card back.

“You four have fun,” he told them.

“Oh don’t worry,” Coco said with a smirk, looking at her friends. “We will.”

They were led to a door on the first floor, put their possessions in lockers, and were handed their gear. They each got a waterproof black vest with lights, a black waterproof laser gun that also had lights and was attached to the vest by a very stretchy cord, and black shoes that were designed to be worn on land and in water without coming off. The woman handing out the supplies made sure they were all equipped properly, then began to explain the rules.

“The object of the game is for you to shoot someone on the opposing team on their vest. When you’re shot, you’ll hear a tone from your vest. The lights will turn red once you’re shot and you’ll have to get to a checkpoint, where you’ll put the tip of your gun in the circle with a red outline. As soon as you’re back in the game, those red lights will start flashing. If the lights are red, any shots you fire or that land on you won’t count. Once they start flashing, you have thirty seconds to find cover before they turn back and you’re vulnerable again. There are checkpoints on every level, each marked by white lights. Your guns will never run out of ammo or need to be recharged unless you get hit. There are four of you so you’ll each have a partner. You and your partner will have the same color lights on your vests and guns, and the other side will have another. Your gun won’t ever land a hit on your partner. Who’s on which team?”

“Okay guys,” Coco said, turning to her friends. “First, Fox and I are going to be on separate teams, each of us with one of you so you get the hang of it. The second round, you’ll be on the same team and Fox and I will be a team. You’ll be facing two experienced players in that second round, so learn fast in this first.”

“I’ll take Yatsuhashi,” Fox said. “He’ll need to learn more stealth than anything, and while you are great at shooting and taking out people with one shot, you are not great at sneaking around.”

“I still win a lot,” Coco pointed out.

“Yes, because you’re a very good shot. You don’t sneak around but you always find holes in the shielding and somehow manage to hit me through the smallest ones while I’m taking cover,” Fox replied.

“So I guess that puts us together,” Coco said, turning to Velvet. The brunette nodded, her eyes bright and excited.

“Okay,” the woman setting up the equipment said. “You two will be neon green,” she said, looking at Fox and Yatsuhashi. “And you two will be neon aqua.” She entered the information into her computer and the lights changed from neutral white to lime green for Fox and Yatsuhashi and a bright shade of aqua for Coco and Velvet.

“This is gonna be fun,” Coco predicted, smirking.

“Alright. Go to the checkpoint marked with your color to check in. Once all four of you have activated your equipment by putting the tips of your guns into those circles, you’ll hear a loud tone telling you to start. When that tone sounds again, the game’s over. The team that landed more hits than the other wins. Ready?”

“Absolutely,” Fox said, smirking at Coco. “You’re going down.”

“You wish!” Coco replied. “Let’s head in and get started.”

The woman worker held open a door and they walked into a completely dark room with shielding barriers of various sizes and shapes, each in a pale color that glowed under the lighting. The only light was given off by those shielding objects.

“I can’t wait to see you two on the loser board,” Coco told Fox and Yatsuhashi, putting an arm around Velvet’s shoulders. “We’re taking you down.”

“Good luck with that,” Yatsuhashi said. “You’ll need it.”

“That’s the spirit,” Coco commented with a smirk. “Have fun while we kick your asses, you two!” she added, removing her arm from Velvet’s shoulders and leading her toward the aqua lights. There were green lights on the opposite side of the venue, putting as much distance between those first checkpoints as possible.

“So…do you have an idea for a strategy?” Velvet asked. Coco thought for a few seconds.

“Stay with me for a while. I’ll show you the basics of how things happen. When you get the hang of it and you’re comfortable with going on your own, we’ll split up so we’re more mobile and less of a target,” she decided.

“Right,” Velvet agreed. “And don’t worry, I won’t go easy on Yatsu.”

“Good. This is a competition, after all, and it’s a lot more fun if you think of anyone from the other side as an enemy, not a friend. You’ll have a great time with this,” Coco replied. “Look around at the layout while we’re heading to the checkpoint. It’s good to have a sense of terrain.”

“I’m looking,” Velvet told her.

“And while you’re doing that, try to figure out if you have any talents that would be helpful in this game.”

There was a long pause.

“Well…I’m a fast runner, and I can run really quietly,” the brunette said. “And I’m good at fitting in small places.”

“Good. All that will come in handy.”

“I don’t know about shooting though,” Velvet admitted quietly.

“Well…okay, just think of it like a camera,” Coco said. “You like photography. This is the same concept. There are crosshairs on the gun. Just look through that like a camera lens. Once you have what you want in your sights, just pull the trigger. Aim for the area between the bright green lights, right in the middle. Just like taking a picture.”

“Oh! I can do that,” Velvet exclaimed brightly, perking up.

“Good,” Coco told her. “We’ve gotta crush those silly boys.”

They reached the checkpoint. Coco put her gun to the circle first. Velvet copied her and the checkpoint lights turned white.

“Are you ready?” Coco asked.

“Definitely,” Velvet said firmly.

A loud tone sounded through the room and Coco smirked, lifting her gun and holding it steady, ready to fire.

“Then let’s go win this thing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm hoping for the inspiration and creativity to actually detail the first laser tag match (or maybe both of them) next chapter. I kinda wanted to do this because laser tag is so super extremely fun, I wanted to involve something with Coco being a good shot, I think the setup I outlined in this chapter would be purely awesome, and I have bursts of silly ideas sometimes.  
> I dunno. I wrote the second half of this chapter in like an 11 PM - 2 AM kinda window and my ideas in that time frame are...strange? Dunno. Hope it's enjoyable!  
> I mean...laser tag. Because why not?


	4. Diner Dinner of Doubts

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah...I wimped out of the detailed match(es) thing. I'll make references, but I'd like to focus on character interaction a little more instead.  
> Eh. I doubt anyone will miss it anyhow.

After two rounds of laser tag, Coco had two overwhelming thoughts occupying her mind. 

 One came during the first round. Coco had been completely shocked by how long it took to silently establish nearly complete nonverbal communication with Velvet: about thirty seconds. But there had been no time to reflect on that during the matches.

 And second...how the hell did Velvet and Yatsuhashi manage to beat her and Fox in the second round? How was that possible?

 Now they were having dinner at a pleasant diner with a wide variety of food. And, much to Coco's dismay, she found her mind wandering back to that almost instant communication with Velvet just through subtle physical cues.

 Now that she had time to think about it, there were several questions and implications raised in Coco's mind that she would much rather not have. She told herself those implications were not real; those questions were baseless; the understanding of each other’s motions in the match meant nothing more than great minds think alike; and Fox was going to have one hell of a field day with this if he ever found out.

 Which Coco knew he would, because he was Fox Alistair and he could practically read her mind.

 Despite her struggle to ignore all the possibilities she was denying, part of her mind kept drifting to the "what if" questions she did her best to shut down as soon as they came. They were flat-out ridiculous. There was no way any of them could be even the slightest bit possible. No, no, no. That stupid ideal wasn't real. The saying was just as fake. It was an illusion created to rush things in stories involving that topic. It was not real.

 And of course her mind kept skipping back to another "what if" question to counter her own logic: What if she was wrong? She had no evidence it was all false except her own beliefs, which could very well be incorrect. There was no hard evidence. Who was she to say it couldn't exist?

 No. No way. That was ridiculous. This wasn't some trashy portrayal of someone's life and internal conflict. This was reality. And in reality, things didn't work like that.

 Did they?

 And now in this diner, Velvet was sitting right across from her, and Coco was purposefully avoiding looking at her. She did not want to see anything that would make matters worse.

 Which was a little awkward since that mean she physically could not look straight ahead, but...

 Anything was better than the wave of all those stupid thoughts about if there was any deeper meaning behind that gaining more momentum.

 Fox's fingers suddenly snapping right in front of her face made her jump.

 "What?" she asked.

 "You've been staring at nothing for at least five minutes," Fox summarized.

 "I have?"

 "Yes. You have," he told her.

 "R-right. Just...thinking," she explained vaguely.

 "And what's so important that you block out everything and end up staring blankly into space for this long?" Fox asked. Coco's face flushed slightly and Fox raised an eyebrow, then smirked.

 Well shit. It looked like he knew now.

 "Thinking about anything in particular?" His smirk widened and his eyes briefly darted to Velvet.

 Yeah, he knew.

 "No," Coco lied.

 Fox gave her a look so she scowled and stole one of his brownies. Now he was glaring. Coco decided to ignore that, ate the brownie, and focused on her own food.

 "Coco?"

 Velvet was trying to talk to her. Okay, that was fine. Perfectly fine. It was fine. She just had to respond without looking up to meet her friend's eyes. No big deal.

 "Yeah?" she said, keeping her eyes down.

 "What did I do?" the brunette asked softly. Her voice sounded like she was hurting. 

 Fox and Yatsuhashi chose that moment to go play one of the many games near the back of the diner.

 "What do you mean?" Coco asked, still not looking at her.

 "Since we left the laser tag place, you haven't...you haven't been yourself to me. You didn't try to embarrass me by flirting, you didn't make any suggestive comments, you barely said anything to me...you haven't even really looked at me," Velvet said softly. "I just want to know what I did that made you mad at me."

 "No! No, Velvet, it's...I'm not mad at you."

 "Look me in the eyes and tell me that."

 No. Oh no...this could be bad.

 Coco felt her muscles start to tense up and forced herself to stay physically relaxed. She still didn't look up, struggling to find some excuse for her lack of eye contact. Any excuse. Anything other than the truth.

 "Coco, please..."

 The pained, pleading tone made Coco sigh and slowly lift her eyes up to meet Velvet’s, where she saw...

 Nothing more than she'd see in anyone's expression. Good. Then the instant communication must have just been a result of playing with the common goal of defeating Fox and Yatsuhashi in the first round. That communication was probably the reason she and Velvet won that first match, and the necessity of silent communication for victory was the only cause of how quickly and completely they managed to understand each other's body language. It wasn't anything deeper than working as a team.

 "I'm not mad, Velvet. Okay? I promise I'm not mad. I don't really know what was going on, but I was never mad at you."

 Velvet nodded and gave a shaky smile. Coco felt sharp pain when she realized her friend didn't believe her. It seemed like she'd really hurt Velvet by not thinking her avoidance tactic through. She had a sneaking suspicion that Velvet suffered from three problems that Coco decided she'd try her hardest to help reduce and maybe even eliminate: self-esteem, self-doubt, and self-blame.

 But first she had to convince Velvet that she wasn't mad at her and explain that the nervous brunette hadn't done anything wrong; it was just an issue Coco was having with herself.

 "Velvet. I'm not mad at you. Just...a little frustrated with myself, I guess. I didn't mean to upset you," she said. "You didn't do anything wrong. If anyone's at fault for some sort of wrongdoing, it's me for not thinking about how you'd feel if I shut down to think things through without telling you ahead of time, then not noticing how you were affected when I did shut down."

 Velvet still didn't look convinced.

 "Hang on...earlier you were complaining that I wasn't hitting on you or making suggestive comments," she said, trying a different strategy. "I think that means something."

 "It means you weren't acting like yourself and I was worried I did something wrong," Velvet said quickly, clearly making an educated guess about where this was going.

 "No, I think you missed me when I wasn't flirting with you. I guess you just can't get enough of me," Coco teased. "I may have to up the intensity from now on to keep you satisfied."

 That worked. Velvet's face turned red and her eyes lightened from that state of nervous pain. She wasn't doubting anymore. She was obviously completely mortified, but at least she didn't look hurt anymore.

 "Please don't," Velvet requested.

 "Too late. I've accepted the challenge. I'm probably going embarrass you quite frequently now. In front of no one, friends, strangers…pretty much anyone and everyone. So you'll have to stay on your toes because you'll never be safe from potential embarrassment unless I'm physically unable to cause it."

 Velvet gave a slight groan and sank down in her booth, shooting a halfhearted glare at Coco. Coco just chuckled, relieved that Velvet knew she hadn't been mad, and that she was embarrassed at the threat instead of upset.

 "You know...Fox abandoned some very delicious-looking dessert items. I think we should take them for ourselves," Coco suggested.

 "Why?" Velvet asked, sitting up again as her embarrassment faded with the change in subject.

 "Because they look good and he doesn't deserve them. He made me lose the second round," she declared her logic.

 "He wasn't the one I kept shooting," Velvet pointed out with an amused expression. "I very distinctly heard your voice almost every time I hit someone."

 "Well he also wasn't the one taking shots through tiny holes and cracks, hitting an enemy vest every time," Coco retorted.

 "Coco, about half of the total hits between all four of us for that round were hits against you."

 And that had been the legitimate statistic according to the digital scoreboard so Coco couldn't argue. She prided herself on being able to shoot with nearly flawless accuracy, but she tended to get shot because she was an aggressive competitor who liked being on the attack; her more defensive skills definitely needed work.

 "Fine. We'll eat Fox's desserts because he made me look bad and I refuse to let him do that without punishing him in some way," Coco decided. Velvet gave her a dubious look. "What? Come on, I'm taking his food. You take some too."

 "Peer pressure?" Velvet asked.

 "Strategy. You know he'll blame me for everything anyhow, so take some for yourself. He won't scold you. Just me."

 "Okay," Velvet agreed with a shy smile, clearly seeing the complete facts in Coco’s words. She took a piece of fudge while Coco grabbed one of the cookies and held it up as soon as Fox looked over. His expression was a mix of "don't you dare do it" and "you'll be sorry" glares. Coco smirked at him and pointedly took a bite of the cookie. Fox started storming over so Coco quickly divided his various desserts evenly between Velvet and herself.

 "Thief," Fox accused, glaring at Coco.

 "What? I gave your desserts to the one most deserving of them," she said, gesturing to Velvet. The brunette gave a slight squeak and stiffened at the attention drawn to her.

 "Then why are half of my desserts on your plate?" Fox asked. "She's definitely more deserving than you, yet you kept half."

 Out of the corner of her eye, Coco saw Velvet relax when Fox barely glanced at her, his attention remaining fixed on his best friend, who still had the cookie she had taken a bite out of to irritate him in her hand. 

 "Care to explain?" Fox pressed, crossing his arms and remaining in a standing position so he could frown down at Coco. Yatsuhashi sat down beside Velvet, chuckling as he took in the scene.

 "Taxes," Coco replied, taking another bite of the cookie. Fox grabbed it and yanked it away from her.

 "Thieves don't collect taxes. Give those desserts back."

 Coco considered for a few seconds, then pushed all the desserts over to Velvet.

 "There. Now I'm Robin Hood. You still gonna argue?" she asked with a smirk. "I gave your desserts to someone more deserving than you or me, and she just so happens to be the fairest maiden in the whole city of Vale." She shot a wink at the brunette in question. Velvet’s face turned completely red and she ducked her head, clearly trying to hide her blush. Yatsuhashi chuckled, and Coco could tell Fox was fighting a smile.

 "Fine. Just because all of it went to someone who's not you. You don't deserve any of my dessert because you are a horrible human being," he declared, sitting beside her. It was said in a serious tone, but Coco was perfectly aware that it was actually a joke. Judging by the chuckles coming from Yatsuhashi and Velvet, they had caught on to the way she and Fox interacted and knew that this was indeed just another playful argument.

 Part of that interaction process in banter like this was a competition to get the last word in, so Coco decided to make a classic comment.

 "Takes one to know one," she told Fox, patting his cheek. He rolled his eyes but put up with it, then finished the cookie he had confiscated from Coco.

"I have a question for you two," Velvet said. "I had a great time playing laser tag, but...I mean, this is the second year of college for all of us. I wouldn't have expected it to be a regular activity for college students, especially when it’s not our first year here. Is it a new fad I'm missing or something?"

 "No," Fox replied. "Most of their business comes from nearby high schoolers, middle schoolers, and young adults who want to splurge on a fun weekend away. We may be the only Beacon students who do it with high frequency and intensity. We get really into it because it has...sort of a special meaning for us."

 "A special meaning?" Velvet tilted her head slightly with a curious expression. "What special meaning?"

 She and Yatsuhashi both looked interested in the subject. They wanted to know why Fox and Coco did something as childish as laser tag so much and so passionately. It was an innocent question for them to ask, but they didn't know what kind of memories the subject of “why” brought to Coco and Fox.

 Coco looked at her lap. She honestly wanted to say something, to tell them at least part of what happened in the past to create an unbreakable bond between herself and Fox. She wanted to open up about everything she and Fox kept locked inside. She wanted to give them the reason why playing laser tag, a seemingly random game, was so important and meaningful...

 But she looked at Fox and he looked at her, and she knew her expression matched his. They both wanted to tell at least some of the story that made them who they were today. They both had a natural instinct when it came to knowing who to trust and who not to trust, and they both felt Velvet and Yatsuhashi were trustworthy people who would never turn on them. Coco and Fox both wanted to show how much they trust they already had in them. They wanted to talk about their past to the two friends sitting there with them...

 But as her eyes met Fox's, Coco knew that he wasn't ready to rip those scars open, and neither was she. They both wanted to, but they just weren't ready.

 "It's...a long story," Coco said softly, breaking eye contact with Fox to look at Yatsuhashi and Velvet. "And we're not ready to tell it. It just brings up...a lot of painful memories."

 "Okay," Yatsuhashi replied easily. "And don't feel like you have to tell us about it at any point."

 "Yatsu's right," Velvet put in. "You two probably keep your past hidden for a reason. We're not going to make you tell us now or ever," she added with a smile. “We’re your friends regardless of if you’re ever ready to talk about it.”

 "Thank you," Fox said.

 "Yeah. Thanks," Coco agreed.

The table soon launched into a discussion of why Fox had ordered two plates of desserts and an apple instead of regular food, and why he hadn’t offered to share the feast of unhealthy snacks. But right before she started the topic, Coco met Fox’s eyes. There was a silent agreement made between them:

_Someday, when we’re ready, we’ll tell them everything._

Coco just hoped Velvet and Yatsuhashi wouldn’t leave them when that day came.


	5. From Cameras to Shopping

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. I meant to get this up sooner, but life happened and...yeah. Things.  
> I'll shut up and get to the story now. ^.^

It was a nice Saturday afternoon. Coco was walking through the park to a large fountain. Velvet had asked Coco to meet her here, but she had refused to say why. Now as she arrived, the brunette was facing away from her, watching the fountain.

"You called?" Coco asked as she walked up to stand behind her. Velvet jumped violently and let out a slight squeak of surprise, whipping around.

 "Don't do that!" she said, blushing.

 "Ah. Still squeaking...still cute."

 "Shut up," Velvet told her in reply, her blush deepening.

 "I'm wearing heels on a paved path. How did I manage to sneak up on you without even trying?"

 "I...um...let’s talk about something else."

 "That wasn’t a very good dodge," Coco commented, earning a slight glare. "But I’ll let it slide this time. Why did you ask me to come down here?"

 "Oh, right!" Velvet crouched and rummaged through a medium-sized bag, which was sitting on the ground. She soon pulled out what seemed to be a very expensive camera.

 "No way. You called me here to take pictures without telling me? I could have worn something nice if you told me you were planning to take pictures of me," Coco complained. "I would have picked out something nice!" Velvet rolled her eyes and smiled.

 "Coco, all your clothes are nice. And if I'd told you what I was doing, you would have worn something that shows an inappropriate amount of skin, is extremely form-fitting, and otherwise emphasizes every sexually attractive physical feature you have. Don't pretend you wouldn't," she said.

 "Oh fine, fine," Coco gave in. "What do you want me to do then? Is there anything specific?"

 "Oh. I...um...this is actually my first assignment taking pictures of someone posing," Velvet admitted, averting her eyes.

 "And you picked me? I'm flattered," Coco replied with a smirk. "I do know a thing or two about it though."

 "You do?" Velvet met her eyes with hope and curiosity.

 "Yeah, from magazines. I flip through them for clothes to buy and ideas for clothes to make. I see a lot of poses. I'm sure I can recreate some of them for you."

 "Really?" Velvet's eyes brightened.

 "Sure. But only if I get to take you shopping when you're done with the photography thing," Coco told her.

 "Oh. Umm..." Velvet blushed and looked away.

 "What?" Coco frowned slightly. "Well I have cornered you into a lot of conversations...are you not okay with spending more time alone with me today? You know, besides this photoshoot?"

 "What?" Velvet's eyes snapped to hers and Coco smiled slightly to show she didn't mind. She wasn't too surprised, really; she knew she wasn't an easy person to hang out with all the time.

 "It's fine. I'm not offended. Don't tell Fox I said this, but he's right. I can be a little much, and I’m hard to handle alone for extended periods of time."

 "N-no! No, Coco, that's not it!" Velvet said hastily. "I just...don't have a lot of spending money."

 "Spending money? Oh, right. You don't know how I take my friends shopping. I tend to just get things for myself because I usually go with Fox and he thinks most clothing stores are the pits of hell. But when someone I'm shopping with wants something, they don't pay a penny because it's my treat," Coco explained. "So if that's really why, I've got you covered."

 "Are you sure? I don't want you to spend too much..."

 "I'm not exactly short on money," Coco replied simply. "It's very hard for me to spend too much."

 "Oh. Okay then," Velvet said with a hesitant smile.

 "I'm not offended if there's another reason," Coco repeated, but Velvet shook her head viciously.

 "No! No, that was it. Really! I swear!" she insisted.

 "I won't argue," Coco told her. "Now...do you want to get started with the photography thing?"

 "Sure!" Velvet perked up.

 "Okay. Tell me when I do something you think would be good for the assignment."

 "I will," Velvet said with a smile. 

* * *

 

After about an hour, the brunette was satisfied with her work and Coco was satisfied with Velvet's upbeat attitude about the whole thing, plus the idea of shopping with someone who wouldn't hate her for it like Fox did.

 And based on Velvet's eager attitude when Coco led her from a parking garage to the best area in the city, it looked like her friend was going to enjoy this trip.

 "Alright, there are some good shops down here. Stay close; I don't want to lose you." That was a very distinct possibility since the sidewalks were very crowded.

 "Okay," Velvet agreed, stepping forward so her right shoulder pressed against Coco's left shoulder blade. 

 "Now let's see...there are a few shops down this way that have really cute clothes you might like." Coco started walking, keeping herself very aware of Velvet's presence behind her to make sure they didn’t get separated.

 After walking across two intersections, Coco gently grabbed Velvet's wrist to pull her down a right turn, smirking at the squeak and brief stiffening of muscles behind her.

 "Right here," she said at the end of the block, not releasing Velvet's wrist as she turned to the right, walking into an elegant shop with a welcoming atmosphere. She turned, switching hands so she didn't have to let go of Velvet's wrist, and smirked at how red her friend's face was.

 "You can let go now," Velvet told her.

 "Can I?" Coco pulled her closer and held her there with one hand on her wrist and her other arm around her waist, meeting her wide brown eyes with a playful expression. It looked like Velvet was trying to glare, but she was clearly too mortified to do so. Coco leaned down a little, just to taunt her.

 "N-no. Don't...d-don't...um..."

 "Speechless again," Coco noticed.

 "Because it looks like you're about to kiss me!" Velvet hissed, her blush deepening.

 "Who says I'm not?" Coco teased.

 That had the desired and very pleasing effect of Velvet stuttering out meaningless sounds, her eyes as wide as they could be while her face turned a deeper shade of red than should have been possible. Coco laughed and stepped away.

 "You're just too cute when you're embarrassed."

 "I know. You tell me all the time," Velvet complained.

 "It's a compliment."

 "It's flirting."

 "Same thing. Now come on, I'll take you to the best section." Coco made a grab for Velvet's wrist but the brunette quickly stepped away, holding both hands behind her back.

 "No. You'll just embarrass me again," she said firmly.

 "You're no fun," Coco replied, rolling her eyes. Velvet glared halfheartedly and Coco chuckled, then led her friend to the back left corner of the store.

 "This is all...it all looks so nice," Velvet noticed softly.

 "It's mostly nice," Coco told her. "No store is completely nice. Now go ahead and browse around. Don't worry about what's on the price tag; just find things you like and I'll be the judge on price limits."

“Okay,” Velvet agreed with a smile, then started to look through the racks of clothing. Coco began her own search as well, soon finding an armful of clothes. She looked at Velvet to see that her friend had just as many items.

“Hey,” Coco said. Velvet looked up at her. “Come on; the fitting rooms are this way.”

The trying on of clothes was honestly fun. Coco knew fashion inside and out so she always picked out a high-quality wardrobe for herself without even thinking about it. With Velvet, she had her friend come out so she could inspect every bit of clothing for quality, fit, and attractiveness. She then told Velvet how good of a choice it was, after which they went into their separate fitting rooms to try on more clothes.

And now…now Coco pulled out her trap. It was a dress that zipped in the back. She could operate the zipper with practiced ease, but Velvet didn’t know that. Coco showed Velvet the dress, then went back into the changing room so she could put her plan in motion.

This would be rewarding in terms of Velvet’s embarrassment for sure.

"Hey Velvet." Coco called softly. "Can you give me a hand unzipping this dress?"

 "No. Absolutely not," the brunette said firmly.

 "Why not?" Coco made sure her slight pout was evident in her voice.

 "You got it on. You can get it off. You're only asking for my help so you can pull some ridiculous stunt to hit on me and embarrass me."

 "Damn. I'm getting predictable," Coco muttered.

“Thankfully, yes. You are,” Velvet stated.

“Hmm. I’ll have to think up some new strategies then.”

“Please don’t…”

“Too late. I’m already planning,” Coco told her smugly.

There was a slight groan from the fitting room beside her, followed by the thunk of Velvet’s forehead hitting the divider between them.

“Coco Adel, you’re going to be the death of me. You’re going to embarrass me to death,” she predicted.

“Definitely not. Why would I do that? I’d miss seeing your adorable and wonderfully pretty face too much.”

“My point exactly,” Velvet told her with a sigh.

“What point? I was just being honest,” Coco gave her response, earning another groan. “Now let’s add up the cost of all the clothes I approved of, buy them, and head to the next store.”

“Okay. And Coco…thanks for this. The shopping thing, not the embarrassing me in public thing.”

“My pleasure, Velvet. If there’s anything you need, just ask. I’d be more than happy to help,” Coco replied. “And I mean that seriously. Not sexually or anything…well, not only sexually," she added a teasing comment. "But jokes aside, I really do care about you.”

“Thank you,” Velvet said, a smile made clear in her voice. “Thank you so much.”

“No problem. I’m always here for you, no matter what.”


	6. A Very Annoying Intruder

It was almost nine o'clock at night by the time Coco got back to her apartment. The day had been long, but in a good way; being a model then spending many hours shopping with someone who actually participated instead of complaining was fun.

 She unlocked her door and walked in. The lights were off so she closed the door behind her, flipped the switch, and jumped violently when she saw a shape sitting on her couch.

 "Dammit Fox," she said when she recognized him. He had been sitting in the dark, probably to startle her. Which he had done, but she disregarded that success. "We have each other's keys for serious reasons. Not...whatever this is. Or...is this for a serious reason?"

 There were a few seconds of silence as their eyes met, full of memories and pain.

 "Not one like those," Fox said. "But I needed to corner you so you'll talk."

 "Well this can't be bad at all," Coco remarked, but she still set her many bags on the floor and sat in a small armchair facing the couch, waiting for him to speak.

 "Before we start...you look happy."

 "Well...I was with Velvet all day."

 "You were?"

 "Yeah. She asked me to meet her in the park. When I got there, I found out she needed me for a photography project. Pretty rude of her to not tell me ahead of time. Then I took her shopping, and unlike certain people," she directed a meaningful glare at Fox, "she didn't whine the whole time."

 "I see," he said. His expression was unbearably smug.

 "What?" Coco asked warily.

 "Nothing. Yet."

 "Yet?" Coco raised an eyebrow.

 "Yet," Fox confirmed.

 That made Coco curious, but she decided she wouldn't press for more information.

 "So...why did you want to corner me?" she asked instead.

 "I changed my mind. I'm not confronting you yet."

 Another yet? Coco was slightly nervous now.

 "Regardless...I've been here for about five hours. You were highly inconsiderate to stay out for so long. So...I think you need to make me dinner to apologize," he added.

 "Asshole. Make your own dinner," she replied.

 "Rude," he told her.

 "Do you think I care?"

 "True. Still...dinner."

 "I already ate, so deal with it," she said.

 "What? Dinner with Velvet?" he teased with a smirk. Coco rolled her eyes.

 "No, Fox. I was out all day with my friend and we didn't eat dinner together. Of course we had dinner! Then I offered to drive her home but for some reason she insisted on having Yatsuhashi pick her up instead."

 "And you listened?" he asked with mock surprise. "What, you didn't want to push too hard after your first date so she'll think you're not a stubborn little bitch?"

 "Date?" Coco glared even as her cheeks flushed slightly. "I'll let the 'stubborn little bitch' comment slide because you have special best friend privileges. But...date? No."

 "Don't want me to call it like it is?" he taunted.

 "Ugh. Do you want me to make you dinner or not?" she offered a bribe to make him shut up.

 "I take it back. It wasn't a date and you're not actually a stubborn little bitch," he replied, his voice sincere. Falsely so, obviously, but she decided to ignore that in favor of continuing with her life. He did it all the time anyhow.

 "Thank you," she said, standing and heading to the kitchen to make food for her highly irritating best friend.

 "Can I have lasagna?" aforementioned highly irritating best friend called.

 "Sure, Fox. I will make you lasagna."

 "Cool. I love your lasagna."

 "Yes, I know. You like all of my food."

 "Your food is the greatest."

 "So you tell me every time I cook for you," she pointed out.

 "Well it's true," he told her.

 And to be honest, Coco was very proud of her kitchen skills. She could cook, bake, and otherwise throw almost any type of food or drink together brilliantly. If only Fox wouldn’t wolf it down half of the time…

And naturally, tonight was one of the times where he ate two servings in the time it would take most people to eat one. At least he put the dishes in her dishwasher. Then he clearly stifled a yawn as he looked at the clock, then at Coco.

“Mind if I stay here for the night?” he asked.

“Sure,” Coco agreed. “The second bedroom remains my sewing workshop though.”

“That’s nothing new. Not a problem either,” he pointed out.

“Yeah, I know. Let’s just get some sleep. Help me carry my bags into my bedroom.”

Fox laughed at that and walked away so Coco rolled her eyes and went to gather her bags, taking them into her bedroom so she could set them neatly out of the way. Fox was already there.

“I call the right side,” he said.

“Yes, because the right and left sides of the bed are just so different. Neither side is against a wall. They both have the same space from the walls on either side. It makes such a difference in sleep.”

He huffed at her and went to the bed, facing away from her as she changed into pajamas.

In high school, their parents had let them sleep over at each other’s house and even share the same bed because they knew nothing would happen; they were so close that they could have been twins, and neither ever developed nor desired more than a close sibling bond with the other. The only physical contact they ever had in bed was if one hit the other on purpose or while asleep.

Sometimes they still ended up doing the same thing. If it was too late or one of them was in no condition to leave the other’s residence, they just shared a bed with no qualms about it. It wasn’t awkward for them, nor was it any prompt for any action.

Well…they still hit each other from time to time, but they did that no matter when they were near each other so it really didn’t matter.

"Don't you dare hog all the blankets. Or steal my pillow from under my head," Coco ordered as she slipped into bed beside him.

 "I would never!" he protested.

 She glared at him. He had been known to do those two things in the distant and recent past, and she couldn’t stand it.

 "Fine. I won't. And you'd better not kick me."

 "No promises," Coco said.

 "If you kick me I am hitting you over the head with my pillow until you wake up," he threatened.

 "I will hit you back."

 "So...pillow fight?" he guessed.

 "Absolutely," she confirmed.

 "I'd kick your ass," he boasted.

 "Oh? Is that a challenge?" Coco raised an eyebrow.

 "No."

 "Because you know you'd lose," she bragged.

“Arrogant,” he accused.

“I’m nothing of the sort. I am confident and honest,” she corrected him. He rolled his eyes.

“Sure. Whatever you want to tell yourself,” he said, which encouraged her to sit up and slam her pillow into his face before tucking it behind her head again.

“That feels better. Night,” she said, rolling to face away from him as she closed her eyes.

“Yeah yeah. Goodnight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I dunno. I just wanted to do a quick chapter about them. I like writing their friendship here because it amuses me greatly, so I decided to add a little piece about it.


	7. Lunch and Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW it has been forever since I updated this. I'm sorry for the long wait! Writer's block is a BITCH.  
> In case you are not aware, I now have a Tumblr! I use it to post fanfics I don't post here, plus I accept requests and prompts. Name is paradoxikalli because I'm lazy and didn't wanna come up with anything else. I HAVE A LOT OF FICS POSTED ON TUMBLR. So...yeah. Check it out!

It was Friday. Coco thought it was a beautiful day despite the fact that Fox was giving her murderous glares and sitting at their typical lunch table with an empty seat between himself and Coco to keep distance between them.

 “Umm...Coco?” Velvet said softly, sitting on her other side and leaning closer.

 “Hm?”

 “Fox has been glaring at you all week.”

 “Yes. He has,” Coco confirmed.

 “But...why? Did you two get in a fight or something?” Velvet asked with a concerned expression.

 “A fight?” Coco repeated. “We don't really fight. No, he's just pissed off at me because of an innocent habit I have.”

 “Did you just say...because of an _innocent_ habit?” Fox asked incredulously. Coco smirked and met his eyes.

 “It's innocent,” she insisted.

 “You know, this whole week has been great for me in terms of potential dates. Or at least it would have been if you hadn't chased everyone away by giving me stupid ass slaps!”

 Coco chuckled and was surprised to hear some giggling from Velvet as well.

 “Velvet? Come on, you're not on her side...right?” Fox asked. Coco turned to face her and the brunette blushed.

 “I've seen it happen. It's funny,” she admitted.

 Coco looked at Fox to find his expression full of utter disbelief and dismay.

 “See? My habit is innocent.”

 “You're both awful,” Fox declared.

 “Hey!” Coco protested. “You apologize to Velvet. No one is allowed to insult her. She's much too lovely for that.”

 A quick glance at Velvet was not disappointing; the brunette's face was clearly bright red even as she tried to hide it.

 “Fine. Sorry, Velvet. I'll apply the insult to her for being twice as awful as anyone I know,” Fox corrected himself. 

 “Oh, I'm only twice as awful? Fox, I'm offended,” Coco teased. He glared at her again, then pointedly returned to his lunch, muttering something about finding a good shovel under his breath. Coco chuckled again and started eating her own lunch as well.

 After a couple minutes, Coco frowned slightly when she realized the fourth member of their group was still missing.

 “Hey Velvet?”

 “Yeah?”

 “Where's Yatsuhashi?” Coco asked. Fox stopped shooting glares at her and instead took on a mildly curious expression.

 “Oh! He has to work on a paper and he's eating lunch in his dorm so he can get it done faster,” Velvet explained.

 “A paper already?” Coco asked. “That doesn't sound fun.”

 “I know,” Velvet agreed. “He said it’ll probably take him all day, plus a good part of the night.”

 “And I was planning to drive everyone to see how the fairgrounds are coming along too,” Coco said with a sigh.

 “Fairgrounds?” Velvet frowned.

 “The Vytal Festival's coming up,” Coco reminded her.

 “Oh yeah! Right. How could I forget that?”

 The Vytal Festival was a major event that happened every four years in Vale. It was a celebration of every aspect of life and took place in a massive field just to the north of town. Games, food, shops, rides, and more took up the entire area, and the festival lasted from the beginning of September to the end of March. It drew crowds of all ages from around the country.

 The festival was due to kick off in about one week, and Coco was extremely impatient. She was desperately curious about what new opportunities it was going to bring. It would definitely bring damage to her checkbook, but she had faith that it would be worth it.

“Do you think Yatsuhashi would be okay with it if I took you to see them anyhow?” Coco asked Velvet. “I don’t want to just leave him out though…I’ll conveniently forget Fox so he’s left out too.”

“I’m sitting right here, you know,” Fox pointed out irritably. Coco ignored him.

“I, um…I think that’d be fine,” Velvet said, blushing.

“Good. Then tonight, we’ll go drive by the fairgrounds. Meet me by the library at eight?” Coco requested.

“I’ll be there,” Velvet agreed with a smile. Coco felt Fox’s eyes on her and turned to him. He was watching her with a teasing glint in his eyes. She knew exactly what that glint meant and proceeded to steal his soda. There wasn’t a lot in it, but Coco still drank what was left and held the empty cup out to him, smirking.

“You suck,” Fox informed her, grabbing it and walking toward the soda dispensers.

“What was that for?” Velvet asked curiously.

“He, uh…” Coco struggled to think of a plausible lie. “I just felt like it.”

Velvet raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying it, and Coco surveyed the area to distract herself. Upon seeing that Fox was hitting on four rather beautiful young women by the soda dispensers and napkins, and that those women were clearly flirting back, she smirked and knew she had a duty to fulfill.

 “I'll be right back, Velvet,” she said with a wink. Then she went over to the counter so she had the chance to give Fox a congratulatory ass slap before grabbing a few napkins to make an excuse for being there. Then she went back to Velvet. When she sat down, she saw three of the four walking away. The fourth woman said something to them and waved, then continued talking to Fox.

 “Wow,” Velvet said. “Didn’t he just complain about that?” Coco gave a slight shrug.

 “Well one stayed, didn't she?” she replied. Velvet chuckled and Coco started eating, looking up when Fox and the remaining woman sat down.

 “She's sitting with us,” he said. “And by the way, Coco...you are an awful best friend.”

 “Whatever,” Coco replied, then looked at the woman. “So what's your name?”

 “Nebula Violette,” she said.

 “Cool. I'm Coco Adel, and this is Velvet Scarlatina. Our other friend, Yatsuhashi Daichi, is apparently working on a paper from hell. If you ever want to talk about Fox, hit me up. Best friends since seventh grade means I know way too much about him, and I'm always willing to share.”

 “I'll remember that,” Nebula said with a slight smirk. Fox glared at Coco, who smiled innocently back at him.

 “I've never seen you around campus before,” Velvet noticed curiously, tilting her head.

 “I'm visiting, actually,” Nebula replied. “From Shade University, out in Vacuo.”

 “Utah, right?” Coco asked.

 “Yeah. I came with some friends for the festival. It's an excused absence as long as I take a few classes while I'm here. My friends and I are even living in a four-person dorm as guests.”

 “Friends you chased away,” Fox added with a sharp, meaningful glare at Coco.

 “Are you expecting an apology?” she asked. “Because I'm not sorry, so it's not happening.”

Fox muttered a string of profanity under his breath and turned back to his food. Coco chuckled, looking at Velvet again.

“Library at eight. Don’t forget,” she reminded her.

“I won’t,” Velvet assured her with a smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, sorry for the lateness! I've been doing lots of oneshots and a high school AU (still in-progress), and all that's on my Tumblr. If you haven't already, drop by my Tumblr! Again, I take requests, prompts, and questions about anything. Thanks for the patience!


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